At present most bicycles have brakes which are operated by hand. The hand brakes include levers on the handle bars of the bicycle. The levers are connected by cables to brake callipers situated in association with front and rear wheels of the bicycle. When using the brakes, a cyclist often has to apply a large amount of hand pressure to achieve effective braking and he or she relies solely on adjusting hand pressure to control the front and rear brake callipers. This makes the application of bicycle brakes difficult in some cases, particularly over long down hill runs and over rough terrain where loss of control can occur. Continuous pressure results in soreness to the finger and hand joints and muscles which is further aggravated by airflow over the hands. This creates difficulty in sensing the relative hand pressures required to achieve smooth progressive braking.
A further problem with known braking mechanisms is that, for more complex braking arrangements, variations in the construction at the manufacturing stage are usually required. The use of custom manufactured brake components and associated constructional requirements, limits the situations in which this type of brake mechanism can be used to new bicycles or bicycles requiring major structural modifications.
An object of the present invention is to provide a mechanism for progressive braking wherein the primary pressure which activates the brakes of either or both front and rear wheels is achieved by a cyclists legs, thereby reducing the need for hand strength and allowing the hands greater freedom of movement for steering control.
A further object of the present invention is to provide a brake mechanism which does not require major structural and/or mechanical modifications, and which can be fitted to an existing bicycle with relatively minor modifications.
Yet a further object of the present invention is to provide a modified brake mechanism for chain driven mechanisms such as a bicycle, in which said mechanism can selectively provide progressive braking where, in a cycle, the primary pressure which activates the brakes of the front and/or rear wheels is produced by a cyclists legs. This reduces the need for hand strength and allows the hands greater freedom of movement for steering control.
A further object of this invention is to provide a consumer with a useful alternative choice.